The invention relates generally to call centers or other call processing systems in which voice calls, e-mails, faxes, voice messages, text messages, Internet service requests or other types of communications are distributed among a number of service agents for handling.
Call centers distribute calls and other types of communications to available call-handling service agents in accordance with various predetermined criteria. In existing call centers, the criteria for handling a call are often programmable by the operator of the call center via a capability known as call vectoring. Typically, when the call center detects that an agent has become available to handle a call, the call center identifies the call-handling skills of the agent, usually in some order of priority, and delivers to the agent the longest-waiting call that matches the agent""s highest-priority skill. Most conventional call distribution techniques generally focus on being xe2x80x9cfairxe2x80x9d to callers and agents. This fairness is reflected by the standard first-in, first-out call to most-idle-agent call assignment process. The above-noted skills-based queuing improves upon this basic process in that it allows each agent to be placed into a number of different service categories based on the skill types supported by that agent.
Today, many call centers are run by businesses that operate as service bureaus, meaning that they handle calls on a contract basis for other companies. The contract generally governs how the service bureau must handle the calls, how the service bureau will be paid for achieving designated interval-based performance metrics, and the financial penalties the service bureau will incur if the performance metrics are not met. The designated performance metrics are generally xe2x80x9cmetxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cnot metxe2x80x9d based on some aggregate performance over a defined time interval, such as a half-hour or an hour. For example, the contract may specify an average speed of answer (ASA) of 30 seconds for calls of call type A within the defined interval, meaning that some callers can have longer waits, as long as within the interval the ASA is 30 seconds or less. As another example, the contract may specify a percentage in service level (PSL) stated as a percentage of calls which must be handled within a given time within the designated time interval, such as 80% of calls handled within 20 seconds in the designated interval.
Existing call centers, such as the DEFINITY(copyright) call center from Lucent Technologies, may include the capability of adjusting a call selection process such that calls are handled based on predicted wait time (PWT) as compared to a service objective (SO) for handling the calls. In a call center with this type of capability, each call is still generally considered individually, without regard to any aggregate performance statistics which may have already been accumulated within the current interval. In addition, service objectives are generally static and usually changed only through an administrative process. However, in a service bureau application, agents may handle multiple skills governed by different contractual agreements. A drawback of existing call centers is that such centers generally do not take into account, in the call selection process, how well the contractual targets for interval-based performance metrics are being achieved in the current interval, and the penalties associated with failing to achieve any of the contractual targets.
The invention provides call selection based on target values of interval-based performance metrics so as to ensure the achievement of the target values during a specified performance interval. In an illustrative embodiment, a memory in the call center is used to store information regarding contractual target values of one or more interval-based performance metrics. The interval-based performance metrics may be, for example, an average speed of answering metric, or a percent in service level metric. The call selection process is then adjusted within a given performance interval based at least in part on a comparison of a value of the metric actually achieved, during the time elapsed within the given interval, to the stored target value. For example, a service objective of the call selection process may be adjusted at a designated point in the interval if the value of the metric actually achieved to that point in the interval will not allow achievement of the target value within the interval, based on a prediction of the number of calls expected in the remainder of the interval. In addition, the call center may determine the penalties associated with missing contractual target values, and take these penalties into account in adjusting the call selection process. Other techniques may also be used to provide the adjustment of the call selection process, including, for example, adjusting overload thresholds which control when one or more reserve agents begin to take calls.
Advantageously, the invention allows a service bureau or other call center operator to meet all of the requirements of a given contract with minimal over-performance and minimal under-performance, thereby maximizing the profits realized on the contract. These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description.